Dr. Jennifer Caudle Explains Why You Should Get A Flu Shot

Flu season has arrived and the virus has spread to more that 40 states across the country. Dr. Jennifer Caudle, a physician of family medicine, joined Roland Martin on “NewsOne Now” to explain why everyone should get a flu shot to help slow down the virus.

Caudle told Martin and the “NewsOne Now” Straight talk panel that everyone six-months and older should get a flu shot because “it’s one of our best protections against the flu.”

Even though there is a “mismatch between the vaccine and the circulating flu out there, it’s still one of the best measures that we have” to fight the virus.

Dr. Caudle went on to dispel a few flu related myths saying “The flu shot can not make you sick. The flu vaccine, when we give it in the killed form and as a shot is not alive and it can not transmit illness.” She continued, “There are a couple of reasons why people get sick.”

Caudle explained it takes two weeks for the shot to develop immunity, “So you’re not protected the minute you get it.” Caudle added, “Don’t forget if you are exposed to the flu a day or two before you got the flu shot, chances are you’ll still come down with the flu, but it’s not because of the shot.”

Check out Dr. Caudle’s tips for preventing the flu in the graphic above. Listen to Caudle, Martin and the “NewsOne Now” panel discuss how to slow down the spread of the flu and why you should get a flu shot in the audio clip below.